Tom Cruise’s Digger Bombs at Box Office as Verity Wins Weekend
Tom Cruise’s latest theatrical release, the dark eco-satire Digger, suffered a major box office defeat over the weekend, opening to a dismal $8 million domestically across 3,321 screens. Directed by Oscar winner Alejandro González Iñárritu and distributed by Warner Bros., the high-profile project landed at fifth place on the domestic charts, marking Cruise’s lowest North American opening weekend in nearly two decades since 2007’s Lions for Lambs.
The film’s weak performance presents a severe financial challenge for the studio, which greenlit the production with a budget estimated between $125 million and $180 million alongside an additional $100 million marketing campaign. According to an official news report published by The Guardian, international markets offered little relief, adding just $12 million from 74 foreign territories for a global debut total of $20 million.
In stark contrast, Amazon MGM Studios claimed the top spot at the domestic box office with Verity, a psychological thriller adapted from Colleen Hoover’s bestselling novel. Starring Dakota Johnson, Anne Hathaway, and Josh Hartnett, the film exceeded industry tracking expectations by generating $32.6 million domestically during its three-day opening frame.
The strong performance powered Verity to a $62.6 million global opening, easily surpassing Digger and holding off holdover titles including Sony’s Resident Evil, which secured second place with $12.5 million.
Digger stars Cruise as a loudmouth oil tycoon whose actions provoke a catastrophic natural disaster. CinemaScore polls indicated lukewarm reaction from general audiences, who assigned the film a C+ rating, while critics split on the satire’s tonal execution.
Industry analysts estimate that Digger could face theatrical losses exceeding $150 million based on its elevated production and promotional overhead. Warner Bros. has already shifted marketing strategies, emphasizing international critical praise in updated promotional campaigns as the film attempts to recover momentum in overseas markets.
